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Why Everyone Should Be Jealous of Indy’s European Soccer Game

City lands major match set for Aug. 1

Soccer—okay, football—fans still have a year to wait till the city’s new pro team, Indy Eleven, hits the pitch. In the meantime, they’ll get a massive fix of live action when Chelsea FC plays FC Inter Milan at Lucas Oil Stadium on Aug. 1 (FC stands for “football club,” the kind of club that uses a round ball instead of an oval-shaped pigskin by the same name.)

This International Champions Cup tournament game between two elite European teams will be worth every penny of the $120 cost for a good seat. For those skeptical about dropping that much dough on a game not involving the Colts, here are reasons to mull this weekend before tickets go on sale Tuesday:

Indy got the best first-round game of the tournament. The International Champions Cup will take place in several cities this summer. Fans in Glendale, Arizona, will get to see Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid maul the L.A. Galaxy. Indy got lucky to host two top European teams.

The stars will be out in full force. In a summer without any major international tournaments, such as the World Cup or the every-four-years Euro tournament, all of Chelsea’s and Milan’s best players should be available for the game, making this a rare opportunity to see some of the sport’s best players face off in what is sure to be a competitive and entertaining battle.

Drama awaits. Chelsea, an English rival of the one team everybody has heard of (Manchester United) and the winner of last year’s UEFA Champions League tournament (featuring all the top teams from Europe), is expected to re-hire former manager Jose Mourinho, who announced his departure from Real Madrid last month. Why is this a big deal? Because Inter Milan is rumored to be bringing back its former manager, Andrea Stramaccioni, who once led the team to five consecutive titles in Italy’s premier Serie A league. The game in Indianapolis could see a highly anticipated rematch of two of European soccer’s most controversial managers. The soccer world would be watching.

Beckham sightings. You never know. Maybe they’ll even be on the Kiss Cam again:

Comments

Please give it a rest. It’s a first round game and it’s not worth $120. The city that can’t sell out Banker’s Life Fieldhouse for a Pacers game is going to be embarrassed by the smallest first round turnout of any city. Watch. Learn.